Art auction market report: February 2017
In February 2017, ArtSell recorded 3,388 auction lots from 18 auction houses, of which 2,074 sold (61% sell-through). The 2,032 sales with a published price total $19,973,269, with a median of $1,750 (USD at the sale-date rate). The top sale was Fernand Léger, “China Town 1943”, at $1,409,455 (Menzies). 15 artists set a new high compared with every earlier result in the database.
Top sales
Top American artists
Ranked by total of priced sales in the month; region from the artist’s recorded nationality.
| # | Artist | Total sold | Priced sales | Top result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Martin Johnson Heade American | $359,000 | 1 | Florida Pastoral — $359,000 |
| 2 | Tauba Auerbach American | $358,000 | 1 | Slice V — $358,000 |
| 3 | Rob Pruitt American | $162,500 | 1 | Pa — $162,500 |
| 4 | Jean-Michel Basquiat American | $125,000 | 1 | Venus — $125,000 |
| 5 | Harmony Korine American | $112,500 | 1 | Clif Note Check — $112,500 |
| 6 | Hayley Lever American | $90,447 | 7 | Red, White, and Purple Gladiolas — $44,770 |
| 7 | Charles Biederman American | $83,308 | 5 | New York 1/36 — $36,120 |
| 8 | Dan Colen American | $81,250 | 1 | The Space Between Dow Jones and Jim Jones — $81,250 |
| 9 | George Condo American | $55,625 | 3 | Untitled — $23,750 |
| 10 | Jacqueline Humphries American | $52,500 | 1 | Untitled — $52,500 |
Top European artists
| # | Artist | Total sold | Priced sales | Top result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fernand Léger French | $1,409,455 | 1 | China Town 1943 — $1,409,455 |
| 2 | Fernando Zóbel de Ayala y Montojo Spanish | $505,253 | 2 | #305 Dianium — $282,002 |
| 3 | Félix Resurrección Hidalgo Spanish | $376,003 | 1 | A Lady in the Moonlight — $376,003 |
| 4 | Banksy British | $176,594 | 2 | Armoured Car — $162,500 |
| 5 | Nicolae Tonitza Romanian | $160,951 | 4 | Copil cu fundă verde — $128,100 |
| 6 | John Armleder Swiss | $131,250 | 1 | Untitled (Global 1) — $131,250 |
| 7 | Louis le Brocquy Irish | $127,997 | 8 | STUDY FOR RIVERRUN: PROCESSION WITH LILIES — $48,700 |
| 8 | Nicolae Grigorescu Romanian | $108,518 | 3 | Țărăncuță din Rucăr — $58,713 |
| 9 | Arthur Boyd British | $93,963 | 1 | Death of a Horse 1981 — $93,963 |
| 10 | Tracey Emin British | $93,750 | 1 | With You I Want To Live — $93,750 |
New artist records
The artist’s best price this month exceeded every earlier priced result for them in the ArtSell database (artists with at least three earlier priced results).
| Artist | Work | Price | Previous high |
|---|---|---|---|
| Martin Johnson Heade | Florida Pastoral James D. Julia | $359,000 | $271,500 (4 earlier) |
| Mauro Malang Santos | Red Sky León Gallery | $145,701 | $139,722 (37 earlier) |
| Nicolae Tonitza | Copil cu fundă verde Artmark | $128,100 | $87,183 (16 earlier) |
| Lao Lianben | Under the Influence of Moonlight León Gallery | $112,801 | $109,157 (19 earlier) |
| Jorge Eielson | Quipus 60-A Wright | $102,500 | $52,500 (4 earlier) |
| Buen Calubayan | Palabas / Papasok León Gallery | $94,001 | $61,131 (9 earlier) |
| Alain Jacquet | Le Dejeuner sur l’herbe Phillips | $93,750 | $4,333 (5 earlier) |
| Roger Kemp | Untitled 1982 Menzies | $61,077 | $53,137 (13 earlier) |
| Camil Ressu | Aişé Artmark | $50,706 | $11,400 (12 earlier) |
| Danila Vassilieff | Soap Box Derby 1938 Menzies | $45,103 | $32,576 (16 earlier) |
| Mark Justiniani | Book Reader León Gallery | $37,600 | $10,325 (9 earlier) |
| Charles Biederman | New York 1/36 Wright | $36,120 | $28,080 (22 earlier) |
| Augusto Albor | My Favorite Wall León Gallery | $32,900 | $20,323 (9 earlier) |
| Paulina Olowska | From Nothing to Something Phillips | $32,500 | $10,876 (3 earlier) |
| Napoleon Abueva | Carabao León Gallery | $30,550 | $29,616 (11 earlier) |
Auction houses this month
Pananti (797)James D. Julia (330)Art+Object (277)Phillips (263)Artmark (230)León Gallery (205)Sloans & Kenyon (196)Whyte's (179)Wright (171)Menzies (142)im Kinsky (131)Leonard Joel (113)Bonhams (108)Clarke Auction Gallery (82)Toovey's (55)Sopocki Dom Aukcyjny (50)Art Auction East Africa (49)Lempertz (10)